Nov. 29, 1999
By JOE KAY
AP Sports Writer
CINCINNATI (AP) – It came down to hitting a wide-open 3-point shot. Onceagain, No. 13 Kentucky just couldn’t do it.
The Wildcats blew a 10-point lead with turnovers and Tayshaun Prince missedan uncontested 3-pointer at the buzzer Monday night as Dayton rallied for a68-66 victory, its first over Kentucky since 1955.
Tony Stanley scored 23 points and hit a pair of clutch 3-pointers down thestretch as the Flyers improved to 4-0 for the first time in 17 years.
“I think this win will do us a little bit of justice and get somerecognition for our team,” said Stanley, who made five of his six 3-pointattempts. “We wanted this win and I think this definitely helped put us on themap and turn some heads.”
The Flyers also ended their history of searing losses in Cincinnati, wherethey’d been defeated in 25 consecutive games to various teams since the 1981-82season. They’ve struggled anywhere on the road over the last few years.
“The myth is over, the jinx is over,” said Mark Ashman, who had 15 pointsand a team-high six rebounds. “It was probably more our mindset, but wechanged that. We decided we could win on the road and now we have.”
Kentucky, coming off a loss to Arizona in the finals of the Preseason NIT,got ahead by 10 points with 14:33 to play and then crumbled under the weight ofits turnovers and its inability to hit a long-range shot.
The Wildcats had 20 turnovers against Dayton’s sticky man-to-man defense andits fluid zone. They also went only 2-of-13 on 3-point attempts, which has beentheir weak spot so far this season.
“I think we’re just uptight,” coach Tubby Smith said. “We had open looks,shots that I thought were not hotly contested. We just weren’t able to knockthem down. That’s been with us a few games now.”
Stanley’s 3-pointer put Dayton ahead for the first time 58-55 with 4:54left, and his 3-pointer after a long rebound made it 63-57. Kentucky had a lastchance to pull it out after Edwin Young missed a free throw with 7 secondsleft, but Prince’s final shot bounced away.
“I felt like it was going in, but it didn’t,” said Prince, who fell to thefloor after watching it bounce off the rim. “If the shot’s open, you’ve got totake it.”
Kentucky led the entire first half but couldn’t push the lead to more thaneight points because of Dayton’s tough defense.
The Wildcats moved ahead 52-42 with 14:33 left, then crumbled. They hadthree turnovers during an 11-point run that gave Dayton its first lead of thegame.
“That was the breaking point, the cracking point, yet our guys held theircomposure and continued to defend,” coach Oliver Purnell said. “If you letdown defensively there, the game’s over at that point.”
Kentucky had an opening to pull away in the first half when Ashman, Dayton’stop front-line player, went to the bench with his second foul 5 minutes intothe game. But Jamaal Magloire lost his cool and Kentucky lost its chance.
Magloire shoved Stanley hard with his hip long after the whistle, drawing atechnical foul only 20 seconds after Ashman left the game. Magloire also headedto the bench with his second foul, and neither played again in the half, whichended with Kentucky ahead 39-33.
